UNCOVERED INTERVIEWS: Elle Field on the 'B-Side' blog tour!

Wednesday, 18 May 2016

Today, Elle Field joins us for our Q&A as part of the B-Side blog tour. B-Side is Elle's latest novel - a spin-off to her previous Arielle Lockley novel, Lost.

So, what have you been up to since we last spoke to you?
I’ve gone from writing the last book in the Arielle Lockley series to writing that *and* a spin-off book – 2016 has been super busy. Oh, and I’ve also moved house, and been to Disneyland!Can you tell us more about your latest book, B-Side?
B-Side is the spin-off to Lost and tells the events of Lost from the perspective of Etta, Felicity’s goddaughter. Etta has an amazing voice and a real passion for jazz, but she hasn’t made her musical dream come true – she’s like Arielle in that respect.

When Etta finally starts to get somewhere with her music career, it coincides with Felicity’s health deteriorating rapidly, and this has Etta trying to block everything out in a very unhealthy way… B-Side is definitely grittier than the previous two books in the series!What inspired you to write this novel?
When I started writing Found, which I thought would be the next book in the Arielle Lockley series, a character kept whispering in my ear... so, I ignored Arielle’s voice and started writing Etta’s story! Originally my plan was to have Etta’s voice tell Part I in Found, with Arielle finishing the book off; when I reached the editing stage, I knew they both deserved their own books.

Arielle really vilifies Etta in Lost, but because the story is told in first-person, can we really trust Arielle? I had to share Etta’s side of the story though she, of course, can be an unreliable narrator – just like Arielle! I also wanted to share more of Felicity’s background, and Etta is the perfect character to give us those glimpses of Felicity’s past.

What are you reading at the moment?
I’ve recently read The Queen’s Poisoner by Jeff Wheeler, which I absolutely loved and can highly recommend. It’s a new fantasy trilogy and the story is superb. I’ve also read the last two Shopaholic books – it was like visiting an old friend catching up with Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood).

Are there any authors who have inspired you?
I’m a massive fan of Sophie Kinsella, Adele Parks, Dorothy Koomson and Maggie Alderson, who are all brilliant authors, and very inspiring.What kind of research did you do for your latest book?
Whilst I enjoy music, I’ve never had much exposure to jazz music – Etta’s passion is jazz, so my research involved a crash course in how jazz developed as a music genre from its New Orleans origins to the jazz music we listen to today. I spent a lot of time listening to jazz, too.

I also learnt about the production side of the music industry, though I knew a bit about that from my first ever book, Torn, which has never been published. In Torn the main character, Lottie, works in A&R, and she pops up in B-Side… Maybe one day I’ll revisit that book!

What did you enjoy most about writing B-Side?
Writing a completely different character to Arielle. Etta is sweary, colourful and passionate with a not-so-legal recreational habit(!), but she’s also vulnerable and fragile. She was great fun to write.What are you working on next? (If you can tell us of course!)
I’m currently editing Found, the final book in the Arielle Lockley series, which will be out this summer.

B-Side (Arielle Lockley Series Book 2.5):

"What do I honestly know about the music industry? I'm just another idiot with a dream who is naive enough to hope that I might be the next big star."Etta Millhouse has always had big musical ambitions to match her big voice, but she's also got three very big problems - the addiction she won't admit to, her godmother's illness that she can no longer ignore, and her godmother's useless business partner (who she wishes she could ignore).Keeping an eye on Arielle's poor business decisions is the last thing Etta wants to do when she's offered the chance to record a demo with a top producer. But, a promise is a promise, even if it has her reaching for another pick-me-up... And then another. And then one more.When the secret she must keep for her godmother, Felicity, sends her drug habit spiralling out of control, can Etta battle her demons in time and make her dream happen? Or, will her music career be over before it's even begun?B-Side sits between Lost (out now) and Found (out summer 2016) in the Arielle Lockley series - read Etta's version of events in this gritty Lost spin-off.

Elle Field writes romantic comedies, and is the author of the Arielle Lockley series and Geli Voyante's Hot or Not. She grew up in Yorkshire, then moved to Scotland to study International Relations and Social Anthropology at the University of St Andrews. Elle now lives in London with her boyfriend and their cat. She's a massive fan of sunshine, giraffes, The Killers, Audrey Hepburn movies, playing Scrabble and tea. Oh, and reading, of course!

You can buy Elle's books here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B00CHIC1GE
Visit her website: http://www.ellefield.co.uk
Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ellefie
Like her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellefieldauthor

Giveaway!

Elle Field is running a giveaway to celebrate the release of B-Side! Prizes are Amazon vouchers, a paperback set of the Arielle Lockley series (Kept, Lost and B-Side) and a set of vinyl coasters. To be in with a chance of winning, simply enter below: